Sunday, March 27, 2011

Lower Otter Brook – March 27th

My original plan for today was to paddle the Middle Saco with the NHAMC, but that trip got cancelled. Fortunately, some folks from NE River Runners were doing a trip at Otter Brook, so I hooked up with them.  Six open boats - Rod, Deb, Emily, Barbara and Dan. The release was about 300 cfs which was a nice class II.  It was a little cold at the put in, but it was nice on the river.

Emily running Otter Ledge
Links:
My Pictures
Lower Otter Brook from American Whitewater
Otter Brook Gage

Sunday, March 20, 2011

Souhegan River - Greenville to Wilton

Another river that I would like to try – this run was last Thursday at about 1,200 cfs on the Milford gage.  Toughest rapids are in the first mile, and I’m not sure Ken included them in this video.



Comments from today's trip:

We had around 6.3 ft / 1100 cfs for the run - good data point. The only excitement was on the upper 3. The middle 2 was a sunny, relaxing float - good early season warm-up for some of us. Seemed to me to be a sweet level as the upper 3 had enough water to give route options but not be terribly pushy. The middle 2 section was also easy enough to pick routes but was a little washed out.  The lower 3 was great fun.
Links:
Upper Section – Route 31 to Route 101 from American Whitewater
Lower Section – Route 101 to Wilton from American Whitewater
Souhegan Gage – Milford
Ken's videos

Friday, March 18, 2011

Quinapoxet River

This is one of the rivers that I really want run this spring.  A couple of different groups ran it last Sunday, but I was on a plane to London.  Oh well...

Here's what Tommy said:
You guys missed a good day at a sweet 9.4 on the gage.  I paddled the Encore instead of the Cascade. I was nervous, never having done it above 9'. But there was a bald eagle soaring over the pool beyond the dam, and folks I know pretty well were gung ho. Turns out in some ways it was easier. Certainly more fluid.
Video from Ken: - looks like fun:


Quin March 12, 2011 from Ken Glusman on Vimeo.

Here are the directions:
  • River Street is closed between the take out and put in.
  • From Rt 190 exit 5 take Rt 140 south.
  • Take a right Laurel St.. Laurel St turns into Manning.
  • At the end of Manning take a left on Wachusett.
  • Bear left to stay on Wachusett when it leaves Rt 31.
  • Then take another left on River St.
  • The put in is just before the intersection of River and Harris
Links:
Springdale Mill Rapid on the Quinapoxet from Ken
Quinapoxet Helmet Cam Test from Ken
Description from American Whitewater
River Street put-in from Google Maps
Quinapoxet Gage at Canada Mills near Holden
Ken's videos

Sunday, March 6, 2011

No interest in the Gorge – March 5th

After last week’s hike, I tried to get a group together yesterday for a run at the Blackstone Gorge. Unfortunately, there wasn’t a lot of interest. With dirty water, sharp rocks, and a long walk back to the cars, I can’t imagine why no one was interested in a short, low level run at the Gorge – just a typical trip on the Blackstone ;-)

I did manage to get out for a couple of hours with Andy at River Island Park. Level was 4’, 1500 cfs. It was pushy with a couple of big holes, but most of the features were washed out. Here’s the only picture I took – Andy below the dam.


Hopefully something better will be running next week, and hopefully I’ll be able to paddle.

Spring Planning - Blackstone Valley Paddle Club trips for 2011

With the first day of spring a couple of weeks away, we have our first planning meeting for the Blackstone Valley Paddle Club next week. Unfortunately, I’ll be in New York. I did send along a couple of suggestions.

Looks like I’ll be leading a joint Blackstone Valley Paddle Club/Rhode Island Blueways trip on July 5th above the Blackstone Gorge. It’s a nice flatwater section that we do every year. One of the few intact locks from the old Blackstone Canal is visible from this section of the river.

In June, I’ll also be leading a Paddle Club Trip from the Valley Falls Dam on the Cumberland/Central Falls line to the Elizabeth Webbing Dam on the Central Falls/Pawtucket line. There is a little quickwater at the start which can easily be avoided. We will explore the system of trenches that provided power to the Valley Falls Mill Village, and then paddle down a pleasant section of the Blackstone River.

Spring Planning - RICKA Flatwater trips for 2011

A couple of weeks ago, I sent an email to Cheryl with some trip suggestions for the RICKA Flatwater group for 2011.

In June, I’m planning to lead a trip on the Sudbury, Assebet and Concord Rivers. At the suggestion of Al the Trash Paddler, we will put-in on the Sudbury River at Sherman's Bridge Road in Wayland. Just downstream at Weir Hill is the headquarters of the Great Meadows National Wildlife Refuge where there is a museum with a nice exhibit on local wildlife. After paddling another couple miles downstream, we will stop for lunch at a small island in Fairhaven Bay where Ospreys are often seen. We will continue downstream to Egg Rock where the Sudbury River converges with the Assebet River to form the Concord River. We will paddle up this short section of the Assebet River which Nathaniel Hawthorn described as:

A more lovely stream than this, for a mile above its junction with the Concord, has never flowed on earth.
From there, we will continue down the Concord River to the take-out at the "Calf Pasture" at Lowell Road in Concord. Those who are interested can paddle another half mile down the Concord River to the Old North Bridge in the Minute Man National Historical Park.

In August, I’ll lead a trip on the Deerfield River below the Zoar Gap. Its a 9-mile run from the Zoar Picnic Area to the take out across from the Charlemont Academy. The trip has a little bit of everything – flatwater, quickwater and class I-II rapids. It was a good time last year.